


Enchanted Life

by merryghoul



Category: Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Genre: Backstory, Gen, Misses Clause Challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-22
Updated: 2012-12-22
Packaged: 2017-11-22 01:40:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/604413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merryghoul/pseuds/merryghoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A day in the life of Mrs. Potts while she was an enchanted teapot.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Enchanted Life

**Author's Note:**

  * For [elyssblair](https://archiveofourown.org/users/elyssblair/gifts).



Mrs. Potts gets up before the crack of dawn.  She's always done this since before she was transformed into a teapot.  When she was human, she made sure the servants, after they had gotten up, cleaned and groomed themselves, were prepared for lunch service.  As a teapot, she has to get the cookware, china and silverware up herself.  The only people up before her are the stove and the bread pan.  The bread pan used to be the Beast's baker before he was transformed.  It's always his duty to have the bread made before breakfast is served and the lunch service starts.

"Rise and shine!" she says.  "Everyone up!"

The cookware, china and silverware come out of their storage spaces.  Sometimes she'll have to stomp on a counter or tap a cabinet to awaken the kitchen staff herself, but it isn't often. 

When the kitchen staff's awake, they'll start cooking.  Mrs. Potts oversees the lunch service for as long as she can until it's time to serve the Beast for breakfast.

The garden and butcher staff brings in what the kitchen staff needs the night before.  But the staff used to be human; sometimes they forget things.  So she has to call on Lumière.  On this particular day, the kitchen needs haricots verts and aubergines. 

"I need a serving cart," she says to him.   

"But Mrs. Potts," Lumière says, "the serving carts hate the mud on their wheels!  Can't you find another way to get to the garden?"

"Do you want me to hop all the way out there and break myself?"

"Well…no…"

"Lumière, may I have the cart now?"

Lumière sighs and gets the serving cart.  The serving cat takes Mrs. Potts to the garden.

"I'm not upset at you," Mrs. Potts says to the head spade in charge of the garden, "but it is your responsibility to get your food to the kitchen.  Don't forget."

The spade apologizes.  Mrs. Potts goes back to the kitchen.

 

"All right!  Time to clean the china," Mrs. Potts says to the dishes and silverware before breakfast is served.

Chip hops over to Mrs. Potts.

"Mama," he says, "I still don't know why I need to take a bath twice a day."

"Now Chip, you know you need to stay clean."

"But there haven't been guests here for years!"

"You never know when we _will_ have a guest.  Now get in line with your brothers and sisters."

 

At the smaller dining room, the Beast has his breakfast.  The Beast has a particular set of serving plates and utensils that serve him for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  The Beast's preferred breakfast plate and utensils come out on a serving cart first and present themselves.  Before the tartine comes out, Mrs. Potts and Chip are rolled into the smaller dining room.   

Once Chip is on the saucer, Mrs. Potts pours hot chocolate into Chip. 

"I don't want chocolate," the Beast says this particular day.

Mrs. Potts and Chip freeze.

"I said _I don't want chocolate!_ "

Mrs. Potts hops in front of the Beast.  "That's no way to talk to a child."

"Master, he's a cup."

"He was once a child.  Just like you were once a child.  Apologize." 

The Beast clears his throat.  "I'm sorry."  It's a forced whisper.

"You can do better than that."

"I'm sorry."  He still forces the apology, but it's louder.

"That's enough, Mama.  I accept his apology."

Mrs. Potts doesn't press the Beast further, but she knows he's not sincere.

"Master, I advise you to control your temper."

"I don't want to control my temper."

"It's your temper that caused us to fall under this curse.  If you don't control it, no one will love you.  The curse won't be broken.  You'll"—

The Beast leaves the dinner table on all fours as fast as he can. 

It's clear it'll take a while for the Beast to accept controlling his temper.

 

Before lunch service starts, Lumière announces the lunch offerings to the Beast, even if the Beast doesn't care about being told what's being served for lunch.  The announcements for lunch allow Mrs. Potts to send out the courses one component at a time.

On this day, however, Lumière is missing for lunch.  Mrs. Potts has to go find him. She sighs and goes to the East Wing of the castle.

After looking in a few rooms and behind a few curtains, Mrs. Potts finds Lumière hiding behind the door of a guest bedroom.   He's with Babette, and they're both in a compromising position.

"Lumière, what are you doing here?  It's almost time for lunch."

"It is?"

"You'll have time to play with Babette later, after lunch.  We need to hurry or lunch will be late.  And you know how the Master is when his lunch is late."

 "He's always grouchy.  He's grouchy when he eats, he's grouchy when he doesn't eat…"

"I know his attitude is wearing on us all, but he's still our employer.  We need to get back to the kitchen."

Lumière kisses Babette on the head.  "I'll be back, my love."

Babette giggles.

Mrs. Potts and Lumière take a cart back to the kitchen.

 

The Beast is more agreeable during lunch and dinner.  Mrs. Potts and Chip return to give the Beast his tea. 

After all the courses have been served to the Beast and the Beast has finished his tea during lunch and dinner, Beast says "thank you" to Chip.

Both times Mrs. Potts nudges Chip with her spout and whispers "Say 'you're welcome,'" to Chip.

"You're welcome," Chip says.  He grins.

The Beast tries to smile, but he stops.

 _At least he's trying,_ Mrs. Potts thinks to herself. 

 

After dinner, Mrs. Potts makes sure the kitchen is cleaned up, to keep the pests out.  (It's hard for enchanted objects to defend themselves from mice and insects, not without fear of shattering or breaking.)  The stove is cleaned, the floors are swept and mopped and the cookware, silverware and china are washed again. 

Mrs. Potts makes sure the kitchen staff is in their positions before she goes to bed.  She is the last person to return to the cabinet and sleep.

In her dreams, Mrs. Potts dreams she and the rest of the castle staff are human again.  The Beast is once again Prince Adam.  He's found his one true love, and the castle is as beautiful as it was before it was enchanted. 

For lunch, Mrs. Potts is pouring tea for Adam and his love in regular cups, not Chip.  Chip and the rest of his brothers and sisters are playing in the grounds of the castle, his older sister making sure he doesn't get hurt while his mother's at work.  Lumière is showing off as he's introducing the courses to Adam and his love.  It feels like a dream…and when Mrs. Potts wakes up to start the next day's lunch service, it is one.  But she'll be human again someday.  It may be today, it may be tomorrow, it may be just before the final petal falls from the enchanted rose.  But she'll be human again, and that's what keeps her going.


End file.
